Andrea Kimi Antonelli faces a more durable begin to life in Formulation 1 than most drivers, says Lando Norris.
Mercedes confirmed final month their junior driver will take over the seat Lewis Hamilton is to vacate on the finish of the season. His ascent to F1 has been terribly fast, having bypassed Formulation 3 to go straight into Formulation 2 this yr.
Nevertheless Norris believes Antonelli has demonstrated his potential within the junior sequence. “He’s going to be in Formulation 1 as a result of he’s in all probability adequate to be there, and Toto [Wolff, Mercedes team principal] sees so much in him.”
Antonelli, who turned 18 on the finish of final month, lies sixth within the Formulation 2 standings behind fellow rookies Gabriel Bortoleto, final yr’s F3 champion, and former Mercedes junior Paul Aron. Final yr Antonelli received three separate championships, together with the Formulation Regional European sequence, and the yr earlier than that he scooped the Italian and German Formulation 4 crowns.
“He’s confirmed himself so much within the junior classes,” Norris acknowledged. “Developing by means of, I feel it’s an enormous soar to go from F4 to F2. [That’s] an enormous soar, so it’s not in all probability been straightforward on him, however to go from F2 after which straight to F1, it’s so much.”
Norris’ ascent to F1 was much like Antonelli’s, although he didn’t skip F3. After victory within the MSA Formulation (now British F4) sequence in 2015, he received three championships together with the Formulation Renault Eurocup (now Formulation Regional Europe) the next yr and was European Formulation 3 champion in 2017. Norris then completed runner-up to George Russell – Antonelli’s 2025 group mate – in his sole season of F2 earlier than becoming a member of F1 the next yr.
He stated Antonelli faces “a steep studying curve, steeper in all probability than what most of us have ever had, which at all times comes with stress and issues like that.
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“So long as he copes with that nicely, I’m certain, studying from among the best right here as his group mate, he’ll be on top of things very quickly.”
Norris’ group mate Oscar Piastri arrived in F1 final yr after profitable championships in three consecutive seasons, then spending a yr as a take a look at driver for Alpine. He stated Antonelli “appeared very fast” in his temporary outing in first follow at Monza earlier than he crashed. “Clearly his session didn’t final that lengthy, however the laps he did appeared very aggressive.
“He’s been very aggressive within the junior classes as nicely. I do know it’s been a little bit of a more durable yr for him in F2, however I feel it’s been a tricky yr by Prema’s commonplace.
“I feel he will certainly be aggressive. Clearly he’s very younger however Mercedes have clearly put him right into a race-winning automobile for a cause and I’m certain he’ll be an awesome competitor subsequent yr.”
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